“Grassbank” Romney is supreme champion at Noorat sheep show

Romney wins: Judge Colin Taylor, left, of Brucknell, with Peter McDonald of "Grassbank" stud at Grassmere with his Romney ram that won the Supreme Champion title at the 2018 Noorat Show.

The "Grassbank" stud of Peter McDonald and Gillian Brooks at Grassmere took out the Supreme Champion title at Saturday’s Noorat Show with a two-year-old Romney ram.

There was 10 exhibitors competing with six breeds represented in the competition.

The quality line up of 60 entries was the largest representation of sheep at the Noorat show for some years.

Results were:

Corriedale – Champion Ram & Ewe, M. Heffernan, Terang.

Poll Dorset – Champion Ram, E. Harrison, Pomborneit.

Reserve Ram, Champion Ewe & Group, J. McCrae, Hawkesdale.

Romney – Champion Ram, Ewe & Group, McDonald & Brooks, Grassmere.

Reserve Ram – J.Bligh, Grassmere

Suffolk – Champion Ram, Ewe & Group, H. Branson, Mortlake.

Southdown – Champion Ram, Ewe & Group, S. Thomas, Bulart.

Reserve Ram – McDonald & Brooks, Grassmere.

South Suffolk – Champion Ram, Ewe & Group, B. Shalders, Grassmere

Interbreed awards

Group – Barry Shalders "Willow Drive" (South Suffolk)

Long wool – McDonald & Brooks "Grassbank" (Romney Ram)

Short wool – Simon Thomas "Silk" (Southdown Ewe)

Lamb – Barry Shalders " Willow Drive " (South Suffolk)

Supreme Champion Sheep – McDonald & Brooks (Romney Ram)

About 7000 people attended the Noorat show on Saturday, matching last year’s numbers. The livestock schedule included a Hereford feature show, dairy cattle, horses, dairy goats and poultry.

Noorat sheep show judge Colin Taylor said he awarded the title of best lamb to a South Suffolk exhibited by Barry Shalders “because she was very well fleshed, she had downs type wool and I thought she was very worthy of the prize.”

Mr Taylor started showing sheep at Hamilton in 1959 and starting judging in the mid 1960s.